The Pilgrim's Tale

Scott Pilgrim vs The World
(Edgar Wright, 2010)

5 Stars

One of the big problems with being in Japan (aside from cheese depravation and a severe overdose of rice) is my love/hate relationship with Japanese cinemas. On the one hand, they are fantastic; big, kid of old fashioned, with amazingly comfortable seats and the all-too-wonderful “pamphlet”, kind of like a theatre programme to go with your movie, whilst on the other, they are ridiculously expensive (think Leicester Square prices), and almost never seem to have the movie you want.

And anything not in the Harry Potter Hugeness Range is utterly out of the question.

And so it was that I had waited so very long for Edgar Wright’s comic book/computer game/anime/live-action mash-up, Scott Pilgrim vs The World, only to find that it was not to be released in Japan. My heart sank, and I was forced to trudge the interweb for entirely 100% legal copies online. But try as I might, I just could not get to see this movie.

Fast forward to boxing day 2010, the DVD release date, and find me speeding towards the nearest media outlet, willing to pay whatever price was to be demanded (£12.98 from HMV if I remember rightly). And was it worth it?

Darn tootin’.

Wright’s adaptation of Bryan Lee O’Malley’s afore-to rather unheard of graphic novel is bright, bubbly, bodacious, and out-right hilarious, truly creating the all-too-many-mashed-up-things genre I just mentioned. In style and undertaking, unless you’ve watched the bizarre Japanese movie Vampire Girl vs Frankenstein Girl, you ain’t seen nothing like it.

Michael Cera’s performance as dead-pan loser Pilgrim is a delight to watch (yes, I may well be becoming a Cera fan at last), whilst love interest Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Wanstead) is a hair-dying delicacy from beginning to end. Kieran Culkin (who you will spend the entire film thinking “who does he look like?”, only to kick yourself when the credits roll) is wonderfully wicked as Scott’s gossipy but loving gay room mate, whilst Alison Pill and Mark Webber (reunited again after Lars Von Trier’s little wonder Dear Wendy) rock some socks as Scott’s equally monosylabatic band-mates.

The true show-stealer, however, is Ellen Wong as love-sick Knives Chau, managing to be the perfect balance of adorable, annoying and kick-ass. One to watch in the future.

The story, admittedly, is pretty bizarre; to win the heart of the girl of his dreams, Scott must battle her seven evil exes, whilst at the same time trying to juggle band practice and be rid of an obsessed teenage fan; but, somehow, it works. Under Wright’s direction, and with a stellar cast of mostly unknowns, Scott Pilgrim really was last year’s most inexplicable flop.

But do yourself a favour; forget that you probably haven’t heard of it, don’t worry how daft the story sounds, just get out there and watch it, but it, and spread the world, ‘cause gosh darnit, do I want to see Scott take on the Universe!

Silly Love Songs and a Stellar Comeback

Glee

Season 2, Part 2 (So Far…)
(2011-Present)

5 Stars

It’s no secret that I’ve been a huge fan of the musical phenomenon that is Fox’s Glee since its foetal stages. Before the hype, before the Gleeks, I was getting my glee on with ever-spangly jazz hands.

Alas, come the end of the first season, I was beginning to get a little jaded… The once great storylines and character arcs had been replaced by popularity and a little too much over-confidence. The inevitable curse of sudden fame.

So when season two first rolled round, I was a little dubious… And somewhat rightly so; a number of humdrum episodes and crushing disappointments (the Britney episode… The Rocky Horror Glee Show…) punctuated some truly promising stories.

In the aftermath of Will’s divorce, and the birth of Quinn’s bastard child, we were given some truly inspired nuggets of potential. The sudden sickness, and then marriage, of Burt Hummell (the ever-wathable Mike O’Malley), and the moving and terrifying “coming out” of football player Dave Karofsky (a deliciously menacing Max Adler) proved that the writers were at least working their way back onto the tracks. Unfortunately, this fan was left somewhat… wanting…

But cue the Super Bowl, and with it, television’s most expensive Super Bowl Special; The Sue Sylvester Shuffle, a hilarious and faith-renewing canon-shot from Glee’s glory days.

Glee’s writers have really gone all out to progress the show once more, bringing new twists to the verging-on-familiar theme. Amidst Schuester’s perpetual “we are NOT talking about this” and Rachel’s inevitable moaning about losing the lime light, some fresh and wonderful glee has come to life.

New characters Coach Bieste (Dot Jones) and Sam (Chord Overstreet) complete this year’s ensemble with suitable pizzazz, with Jones’s performance as the “husky” football coach never short of beautiful, and Overstreet’s enormous mouth put to good use as the geeky but lovable quarterback (so long as he isn’t droning out Justin Bieber numbers…). Darren Criss as Blaine, Kurt’s gay mentor (would “bent-or” be utterly offensive…?) at Dalton Academy, is becoming more and more comfortable in his shoes, rapidly turning into an integral member of the cast. His recent rendition of Paul McCartney’s "Silly Love Songs" was nothing short of breathtaking, taking a previously dreary ditty into a work of beauty.

Naya Rivera’s new chest is also a delight to watch.

Erstwhile recurring characters have been brought to the forefront, with regular face Lauren Zizes (Ashley Fink), the burly female wrestler, becoming the unlikely new member of New Directions, and even more unlikely love interest for bad boy Noah Puckerman. Mike Chang’s dancing continues to impress, whilst his overused abs, however, are becoming less and less amazing every time they come rippling out.

With new plot twists coming in every week, and the musical numbers being belted out with their former gusto, it looks like Glee is truly back on top form. With Sue Sylvester now coaching the ingeniously named Aural (Oral?) Intensity, Glee is set for a stellar trip towards Nationals in New York at the end of this season… That is if New Directions can beat off competition from friends and foes alike.

As ever, don’t stop believing… and all that jazz.

One Piece of Greatest

One Piece

(Eiichiro Oda, 1997-Present)

5 Stars


I’ve been in Japan for not far less than two years now, and despite my best efforts to maintain utter oblivion to the world of Manga, it was inevitable that eventually it was going to get me. Being unable to pop down to a comic store that sells anything in English, or tune into the Disney channel on an evening, I have been somewhat Jonesing for my X-men and Kim Possible fixes.

And so, after some gentle nudging from Manami, and a rather groovy collection of freebie key-chains from the 7/11, I found myself more and more intrigued by Eiichiro Oda’s pirate themed adventure, One Piece.

Following the exploits of young elasticated hero Monkey D. Luffy and his crew of unlikely miscreants as he endeavours to become king of the pirates, One Piece is a fantabulously fun franchise that has spread from comic, to TV, and even to a series of feature-length movies.

A cast of bizarre and endearing characters, ranging from anthropomorphic reindeer doctor Tony Tony Chopper and skeletal musician Brooke, to chain-smoking dandy chef Sanji (my own personal favourite) compliment engaging and exciting stories, that although read with vigour in the manga, do have a tendency to occasionally run a little long in the televised version – when one battle lasts for ten episodes, it is something of an overkill.

For me, however, the great selling point of the series is not simply the stellar cast, nor the award-winning flashbacks that constitute a major portion of the tale, but Oda’s brilliant artwork, bringing each character to life in their own individual style, complimenting each persona in inimitable charm.

Amidst a crazed culture of animation that verges from the most disturbing hentai to the overly cutesy, One Piece is certainly one piece of art that manages to walk that fine plank between annoying and disturbing, bringing to light a sexy, saucy and all-round awesome adventure in animation. With a plethora of books, cuddly toys, socks, action figures, and even a themed restaurant in Tokyo’s Ginza district, One Piece is piratey fun to keep you Going Merry.

The Long Awaited Return...

Primeval
Season 4
(2011)

4 Stars

Having been away for so very long, it seemed fitting to bounce back with the welcome return of another cult classic that somewhat disappeared unexpectedly and for no apparent reason; ITV’s prehistoric sci-fi extravaganza, Primeval.

Over the course of its first two seasons, Primeval introduced us to the world of Professor Nick Cutter and his team of lovable misfits as they tracked down creatures from past, present and future through the streets of London and thereabouts. Great fun all round, with some spanking special effects, delightfully convoluted plot twists, and the occasional much-appreciated shot of Hannah Spearitt walking around in her underpants. Awesomesauce.

Unfortunately, season three saw the series take a bizarre turn for the worse; killing off three of the main characters within as many episodes, crow-barring in awkward new characters and leaving almost every potentially great plotline utterly unresolved. Hence, a somewhat unfortunate cancellation for one of the best sci-fi dramas to come out of Britain in… Well, ever.

And so, two years on, upon my all too brief return to the UK over Christmas, I was delighted to find that the long-rumoured fourth season had finally come to fruition. And, much to my relief, the show had finally taken the darker, more paranoid tone that it had much needed after the death of Professor Cutter. Rather than trying to cram in a new group leader, the writers have done what should have happened in the first place, and brought the grieving Connor Temple and Abby Maitland (the always wonderful Andrew Lee Potts and real-life beau S-Club’s Hannah Spearitt), back from the Palaeolithic and into the show’s forefront.

New cast members Ciaran McMenamin and Alexander Siddig bring delightful new conspiracies and suspicions to the show’s mythology, whilst at the same time, looking to finally resolve some of the first few seasons’ storylines. A plethora of new beasties, as well as the welcome returns of a few old ones also spice up proceedings.

After a rocky era, it looks like the Primeval team are back on track, bringing to the present the former glories of its past. With season five set to start in the autumn, I shall be waiting to see what the team has dug up for the future.